From the cockpit to the flight deck – learning, flying and teaching the airliners and first time in the Concorde test pilot’s seat – part two of an interview with Alan Smith

Determined to become an airline pilot after leaving the RAF in 1959, Alan Smith takes us through his tough self-financed route to his Airline Transport Pilot’s licence before breaking into the airlines, flying the DC-3, the Heron and the BAC One-Eleven in his time in Jersey Airline and on the flying staff at BAC. As well as training outside pilots on the One-Eleven, Smith also tells stories of being seconded to airlines across the world and being thrown into the test pilot’s seat in the BAC One-Eleven and, for the first time, in Concorde.

Alan explains how, despite his extensive military flying background, it took eight demanding months of rigorous examinations and additional flying experience to earn the coveted Airline Transport Pilot's Licence just before Christmas 1959.

Finding work then proved difficult, but after passing the DC-3 technical examination, he found a junior position with Jersey Airlines, where he quickly progressed to captain on the DC-3 and later the de Havilland Heron. He accumulated extensive commercial flying experience across the Channel Islands, France and southern England, logging more than 1,500 hours in the first year alone.

When Jersey Airlines was absorbed into British United Airways in 1968, the threat of redundancies and industrial disputes persuaded him to leave Jersey and seek new opportunities after eight years with the airline.

Alan wrote to around 70 airlines worldwide before a chance advertisement for a training pilot led him to joining the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). After qualifying as a One-Eleven instructor and examiner and gaining experience with Autair, he embarked on a training role, instructing airline crews, delivering new aircraft and supporting customers around the world.

In 1969, as Concorde flight testing gathered pace at Fairford, BAC announced the closure of its Wisley site and redundancies. Alan boldly challenged the decision by writing to John Cochrane, Concorde’s Deputy Chief Test Pilot. The move paid off. After returning from a training assignment, he was transferred to Fairford to support Concorde operations. At the same time, he continued to earn his keep through airline training work, including a secondment with Court Line.

After expressing an interest in flying a Canberra bomber at Fairford, Alan was selected in 1973 for Ministry of Defence test pilot training. Later that year, he made his first flight in Concorde 002 alongside Brian Trubshaw - a pivotal moment that led to his future role as a Concorde test pilot and crowned a remarkable journey from RAF pilot and airline captain to the forefront of supersonic aviation.

Alan Smith talked with Julian Temple, Heritage Archivist for BAE Systems Heritage, on 19 March 2024. The recording was edited for podcast by Eur Ing Mike Stanberry FRAeS and is published by kind permission of BAE Systems for the Royal Aeronautical Society/National Aerospace Library’s oral history project ‘If I only didn’t do it that way…….” Capturing history from the horse’s mouth to inspire today’s aeronautical professionals'.

A transcript of the interview recording is available on the National Aerospace Library catalogue: https://raes.soutron.net/Portal/Default/en-GB/RecordView/Index/4193384